Robotface teams up with Hamish & Andy to launch their ‘March Eve’ video for their 2020 podcast season

(Tom David, Robotface co-founder and DOP onset with Hamish Blake, Andy Lee and Jack Post with BOLT Cinebot rigged with Phantom 4K VEO camera during filming of ‘March Eve’ podcast launch in Robotface studios)

Melbourne based motion control specialists Robotface collaborated recently with Hamish and Andy to create their debaucherous video launching their 2020 Podcast season. The team at Robotface captured elements of the video with their new high speed motion control camera robot and phantom 4K slow motion camera to create some uniquely dynamic (and hilarious!) party imagery.

“We began the process chatting with the boys as Hamish explained he needed ‘literally the best camera you can get in the world’. They had a simple vision of how they wanted to the slow motion party scenes to look, and through high speed motion control we were able to execute the concept perfectly – we’re all in stitches at the results!” says Tom David, co-founder, Robotface.

The camera robot that’s standard-issue in Hollywood has filled a major gap in filming motion-control in Melbourne since its arrival in November 2019, bringing a fresh perspective to the local film and television scene, including commercial, music-video production as well as the events industry.

The Robotface camera robot is a BOLT High-Speed Cinebot – the leading, Oscar- winning motion control system used by top cinematographers globally. The fastest of its kind, it captures images with a crisp focus impossible to replicate by hand or any other method.

(Robotface on location with BOLT Cinebot on tracks during music video collaboration with Monster & Bear)

Andrew Dale, co-founder, Robotface: “The beauty of the BOLT Cinebot is that it is capable of moving a large or small camera package on a simple or dynamic path at any speed, and replicating these moves with pixel-perfect accuracy, every time.

“Moves can be easily programmed in real-time on set or pre-programmed in advance, making it ideal for the rigorous schedules of today’s production expectations. And with Melbourne receiving large-scale infrastructure investment and interest from international film-makers, Robotface’s arrival on the scene is perfectly timed,” Dale says.

Tom David, an award-winning cinematographer and MRMC-trained senior motion control operator, and producer wife Stephanie David, teamed up with producer/director Andrew Dale to provide local and visiting film crews with the world’s leading motion-control solution in Robotface.

(Robotface on location with Bolt Cinebot rigged with RED Helium camera package during music collaboration with Monster & Bear.)

Since their inception in late 2019, many projects are still embargoed, however Robotface can share it has been used to shoot recent “Forever” music video for international act Amity Affliction, produced by Visible Studios, maker of the music video for the worldwide Tones & I hit, “Dance Monkey”. Other clients include the likes of Guilty, Monster & Bear and EndemolShine Australia.

Robotface has taken up residence in Port Melbourne, a stone’s throw from the Docklands Studio and a newly-announced super sound stage, with two studio spaces: a 11 x 10 metre wrap-around infinity cyclorama with a car turntable; and a smaller, 8 x 7 metre workshop studio.

And, like every in-demand starlet, Robotface can be taken on location and within just two hours, be making magic on-screen for adoring fans around the world.

MEET ROBOTFACE:
Maximum camera height: 3.5 metres.
Maximum reach: Two metres.
Maximum speeds: Horizontally or vertically, 2 metres per second. 180-degree rotation,1 second. On 9 metres of tracks, 4.5 metres per second.

Other star qualities:
– Able to operate with any camera package.
– Executes complex camera movements with repeatable pinpoint accuracy for new levels of dynamic, high-speed tracking shots.
– Up to 9m of track to dolly the unit at low or high speeds.
– Moves from a standstill to a full, high-speed motion and back to a complete stop in seconds
– Our Phantom 4k slow-motion camera can film up to 1,000 frames per second at 4K resolution in a delicious 12bit RAW format with 12 stops latitude. At 2K resolution it can achieve speeds up to almost 2,000fps.

Main points:
– Already in hot demand, Robotface was chosen by Hamish & Andy because Hamish wanted ‘literally the best camera you can get in the world’ to shoot their content – the March Eve launch of their 2020 podcast season – and Instagram lit up with 145,000+ views of the perfectly-shot shenanigans.
– At the cutting edge of technology, Robotface is capable of moving within a volume of space at any speed, in simple or complex way, and replicating these moves with pixel-perfect accuracy, every time.
– The first of its kind in Victoria, Robotface fills a major gap in filming motion-control in Melbourne, bringing a fresh perspective to the local drama, commercial production scene as well as the events industry.

– Located in Port Melbourne, Robotface is a stone’s throw from the Docklands Studio and a newly-announced super sound stage, with two studio spaces: a 11 x 10 metre wrap-around infinity cyclorama with a car turntable; and a smaller, 8 x 7 metre workshop studio.